OLDHAM Council has hailed a £260m 10-year partnership deal with big business as a driver to create new jobs and revolutionise the delivery of key services to tax payers.

The Unity Partnership - a joint bid between Mouchel Parkman and HBS - has this week been unveiled as the preferred bidder in a project designed to attract major private investment in IT and council processes, promote regeneration and improve efficiency.

If negotiations are successfully completed, a new joint venture company will start delivering the authority's services across four areas from October.

These are: a new business centre acting as the first point of contact for customers (including services such as Housing Benefit allocation and Council tax collection); exchequer services; technical services such as highways design; and management of a slimmed down and improved portfolio of council buildings.

The so-called Strategic Service Delivery Partnership (SSDP) will initially see about 440 council staff transferred or seconded to the venture in a phased approach eventually taking on more services, including ICT by April 2007.

Mike Chambers, project sponsor, said: "Oldham has done a lot of catching up and we need is something extra now that will help us get ahead.

"The partnership is a route that several local authorities have explored in recent years and in our case we want it to enable us to transform the way we do things.

"This will help us to sweep away redundant and obsolete buildings, invest more rapidly in new technology and work with people who can bring the capacity and experience to blend with our energy and produce better and more effective local services."

The Unity Partnership was chosen following an exhaustive two-year process which has seen 650 questions tabled by authority staff and national experts to clarify risk issues, ensure shared values and guarantee employees' rights.

The 10-year contract - which has a five-year extension option - is scheduled for sign-off in late September, subject to cabinet approval.

If negotiations are not successfully completed by that date, the authority can pull out of the deal and has also appointed a reserve bidder, Vertex Accord (a subsidiary of United Utilities).

Unity has 16 other partnerships with local authorities - including a similar one with Rochdale - and officials stressed that although it is a commercial firm it has both the expertise and shared values to make the venture a success.

Mark Spink, director of public services, said: "This is a partnership - it's about hearts and minds between Unity and the council working together."

"It's not going to be in anybody's interests if we're reverting back to the contract at every point. We have to tease out the issues together, find cohesion and make sure we are at one in what we are trying to achieve."

Mr Chambers added: "It's important the council has a firm stake.

"People will remember the chaos when we contracted refuse collection out to a private firm, but we've been conscious of the risks of partnership with a commercial venture and have been working with the best advisers nationally."